


Then Somebody Bends

by magicalartist



Series: Tales as Old as Time [2]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-01
Updated: 2015-01-01
Packaged: 2018-03-04 15:26:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3072953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magicalartist/pseuds/magicalartist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Regina wants More, she wants them to be a family</p>
            </blockquote>





	Then Somebody Bends

**Author's Note:**

> Part Two of Tales as Old as Time. remember to read in order, they are timed consecutively, picking up where the previous one left off.

“ then somebody bends, Unexpectedly”

Emma and Regina joined their son in the living room, Regina switching cables around so that three players could now play Skyrim on the massive tv screen. They each had a third of the Tv. Henry and Regina sat and watched as Emma pulled up her character and made short work of the dungeon Henry and Regina had just completed. To her surprise, Emma was not a tank player at all. She was a Wood Elf Ranger. She also had high level sneak and stealth skills, and was frighteningly accurate with her bow. She avoided the traps with ease, using them to her advantage just as Regina had done.

Emma worked around the same trip wire trap Regina had earlier. To Regina’s surprise and Henry’s delight she backed away, the draugr following her around the trap. Regina shook her head, disappointed that Emma hadnt thought to use the trap against him but then laughed when Emma shot an arrow at her opponent, sending him staggering back, directly into the trip wire. Henry cheered when the draugr launched across the room in the same death sequence that Regina had triggered earlier. They watched as Emma fought the remainder of the enemies, defeating the major boss far faster than Henry or Regina. She found all the chests in the room, including one Regina had even missed. Regina shook her head, impressed with Emma’s skill.

Henry and Regina rejoined the gameplay now that Emma was caught up, and they played for several hours, late into the night.

Regina couldn’t help but comment on her surprised at Emma’s choice in gameplay. “ I figured you for more of a tank player Emma. I didn’t think you would have the patience to be a stealth player…”

Emma shrugged, “neither did I. I never was before the year in New York. I think the memories you gave me, some of them were your memories, I think it influenced my gameplay. I suddenly went from a tank player to a more calculated, range player. I have to say though, I like this style a lot better and have kept it up.”

Regina looked at her in shock, “you knew? How… how did you know they were my memories?”

Emma laughed, and Henry joined her, “because mom couldn’t cook to save her life before, but last year? She suddenly became a chef. Her lasagna and apple turnovers are to die for!” he winked and smirked at his adopted mother.

She shot him a look and returned her gaze to Emma who was watching her solemnly, her expression unreadable.

Regina shook her head, “you never said anything, you knew all this time and never said anything. Why not?”

Emma shook her head, “ those memories were precious, an incredible gift, and a huge sacrifice for you. I didn’t know how to address it. I didn’t know if you had meant to give me those. I wanted to honor them for the gift that they were, but didn’t know how, so I kept them to myself. I thought they would fade when you broke the curse, but they haven’t.”

Regina nodded thoughtfully, she had fully intended to give her memories to Emma, she knew they would come in handy in helping Emma care for their son. She hadn’t trusted Emma’s ability to cook properly for her son. So she tried to give Emma whatever skills she thought Emma would need. Apparently it had worked and Emma had learned and retained a great deal of that knowledge and still used it, judging by Emma’s change in gameplay.

 They settled into a comfortable silence, playing the game together. _As a family…_ Regina shook her head, cursing herself for wanting more. She was finding herself daydreaming about making a family with Emma and Henry more and more often. _the Swan-Mills Family. It has a beautiful ring to it._ And it caused her heart to ache. They were joined only by their love for Henry. Henry came first. They were friends because of him. She didn’t want to destroy their fragile friendship by wishing for more with Henry’s birthmother.

They played on for hours, losing track of the time. They laughed, tossed light insults, compliments and warnings back and forth as they battled their way through several quests together. Emma frequently got too far ahead and had to pause, waiting for Regina and their son to catch up. Regina could feel Emma’s eyes on her during those pauses, and she often wondered if Emma was playing so fast, getting so far ahead so that she could pause and watch Regina. She wondered what the blonde was thinking about in those moments. She glanced over more than once to find the same longing in Emma’s gaze.

Emma didn’t look away though, she held Regina’s gaze, as if to challenge her, her piercing eyes nearly asking aloud, _why not? Why cant we be that family._ Then would Regina would cave, look away and peek back at Emma to find that Emma’s mask was back in place. She would tell herself she imagined it to begin with, that she was making things weird, but couldn’t stop herself. Not when she could still feel Emma’s arms around her.

Truth be told, she had wanted a hug from Emma that day, she had wanted those reassurances right then and there, she had seen them in Emma’s gaze, knew they were trapped in Emma’s throat, begging to come out. She had wanted to reassure Emma that she already knew the truth, that all was okay between them. She had wanted to grab Emma and pull her into the hug they both so desperately needed. But they had been with the Charming’s, so both women had choked back their words and simply nodded at each other, praying that the other understood everything that hadn’t been said.

Regina shook off the memories and the confusing mess of emotions they brought dangerously close to the surface. She refocused on her game, ignoring Emma’s piercing gaze on her. she played harder, immersing herself in the gameplay.

Sometime later, Regina finally glanced at the clock on the wall and swore.

Henry and Emma immediately scolded her, “ language, Mom, Regina!” then burst into laughter.

“It’s two in the morning! We played the whole day away! I never fixed dinner, and it is well beyond Henry’s bedtime!” Regina jumped to her feet. “You both must be starving, and Henry, you have to be exhausted!”

Henry shrugged, “not really.” His stomach decided to betray him and rumbled noisily. “Okay… maybe I am a little hungry, but I didn’t even notice til just now…”

Emma stood and brushed off her pants, heading for the kitchen. “Henry, pause the games, and shut down the game system. Your mom and I will get you a light snack before you head to bed.”

Henry started to protest but Emma silenced him with a look, “Henry, it is really late, and you need to get some sleep. Do as I ask, and I will throw in a cup of hot cocoa.”

“With cinnamon?” Henry asked.

Emma nodded, “but only if you are in your pajama’s, game shut down, living room spotless in the next 5 minutes.”

Henry scoffed, “it will take me at least ten minutes to do that.”

Emma evaluated him for a moment, “you have seven minutes, and you already wasted one arguing with me.”

Henry launched into motion as Emma shook her head smiling, heading into the kitchen.

Regina shook off the odd feeling that had come over her while watching that exchange. It sounded like many of the parenting moments she had with Henry. She was impressed with how well Emma had handled it, not caving to Henry but largely getting him to listen, even if it involved a little bribery.

Henry would have given Regina a much harder time, but he seemed to accept Emma’s authority without question. Regina would have been jealous if she wasn’t so grateful that Emma had taken over. Regina had begun to panic, she had completely wrecked their nightly routine, keeping Henry up far later than he was used to. Granted it was a lot of fun to spend time with both of them and Henry had probably known full well what time it was and had milked it for all it was worth. Emma had seen her momentary panic and had taken the reins, diffusing the situation, bringing it down from the overdramatized state to the simple mistake it was.

Emma looked at Regina while Regina fixed Henry a grilled cheese sandwich and a glass of milk.

“it happens to everyone Regina. You have fun, let loose a little and lose track of the time.”

Regina sighed shaking her head, knowing Emma was right but still upset with herself, “that was a lot of time to lose track of.”

“One night won’t kill him Regina. It was a rare treat, one he fully enjoyed. And you gotta admit, you were enjoying it too.”

Regina let a small smile work it’s way across her face briefly before it disappeared, “ yes I did. It _was fun_ to play with the two of you.”

“See? No harm done.”

Henry was back in the kitchen, pajama’s on, hair wet from the fast shower he took upstairs. Emma grinned, “ that’s our boy, good job kid. I’d say you earned that hot cocoa.”

Regina nodded going to the stove to make it. She tried not to think about Emma calling Henry theirs. It was true, and it didn’t offend her, not anymore. Instead it caused warmth to spread through her chest, knowing that she had someone to share her boy with, someone who loved him as fiercely as she did, someone who was just as proud of the young man he was becoming. It caused her heart to swell with love and gratitude, caused butterflies in her stomach, before she stamped it down again. she could not allow herself to feel this. It would only bring her pain. Emma loved Henry yes, but she would not ever feel the same way for Regina. And Regina was selfish to want that.

Henry ate quietly, the fatigue finally catching up with him. Regina and Emma followed Henry upstairs, taking turns wishing him a good night of sleep, kissing him on the forehead and then quietly leaving the room.

They headed back downstairs in amiable silence, careful to not create too much noise so that Henry would sleep.

 Regina fixed two more grilled cheese sandwiches and two more cups of hot cocoa under Emma’s watchful gaze, one with considerably more cinnamon than the other.  Emma had offered to help but Regina had refused, needing something to busy her and distract her from her wandering, longing thoughts. Emma had stirred up quite a bit of emotion when she had apologized and tugged Regina into that hug. Regina was still struggling to bring herself under control.

She set the light meal front of Emma at the bar and avoided her gaze. She stood opposite of Emma and picked at her own grilled cheese, lost deep in thought.

She didn’t hear Emma call her name, didn’t see Emma come around the counter to her side, didn’t even register Emma’s hand resting hesitantly on her arm.

It took a moment to realize that at some point, she had started crying and Emma’s arms had come around her again, enveloping her in warmth and safety. That’s what Emma felt like. She smelled of Cinnamon and Vanilla and felt like safety and Home. Regina didn’t even fight Emma this time, she went willingly, letting Emma draw her close and hold her there, whispering to her gently. She could feel Emma’s hand guide Regina’s head to her shoulder, felt Emma’s warm, gentle hands run through her hair, her breath next to Regina’s ear, “it’s okay Regina. Just let it out. I’ve got you.  I am here for you. I wont go anywhere, I swear. You are safe” Emma continued the string of comforting words over and over again as Regina sobbed into her shoulder.

Emma guided Regina to the couch, and Regina settled against Emma again, her face buried in the crook of Emma’s neck, breathing in her scent. Emma’s fingers traced light patterns over Regina’s shoulder, her gentle words still flowing, lulling Regina into a peaceful state. She was exhausted, and confused over her display of emotion. Emma’s words continued to flow, and Regina was hardly listening, simply taking comfort in Emma’s voice, and the way her voice rumbled through her body. She could feel Emma’s pulse, her slow, even breathing, she felt every syllable as it made its way through Emma’s body, past her lips. Regina was nearly asleep…

“you are so loved Regina, more than you will ever know.”

That registered. Her eyes widened in shock and she felt Emma go still. Regina didn’t move for a moment, afraid that if she pulled back and glanced at Emma that she would see that the savior hadn’t meant to say that. That Regina had misheard her, that she was misinterpreting it.

Finally, she couldn’t take it anymore. Emma’s fingers were no longer tracing circles on her arms, her voice had been silent for too long, she was tense beneath Regina and her pulse was erratic. Regina had to know. She gently pulled back, untangling herself from the savior, disturbed to see that her tears and snot were all over Emma’s sweater.

She met Emma’s gaze and gasped. Emma was staring at her, half in shock that the admission had made its way past her lips, half trying to cover the emotion her admission had brought to the surface. Emma was crying. but she was also smiling. It was that same self conscious, unsure smile Regina saw the first time they met, after Henry had runaway to find his birthmother. Regina had found it beautiful then, and now… now she found it stunning.

The silence dragged on between them, and Emma’s smile faded, insecurity taking it’s place, “ I am sorry Regina, I shouldn’t have said that, you weren’t supposed to hear that…”

Regina couldn’t say anything. Not yet. She warred with herself for a moment. She was torn between putting up her walls and giving Emma a chance to do the same, pulling back, putting their masks in place, getting back on safe, stable ground. But more than that, she wanted to know. She wanted to know if Emma had really meant what she said, if what she felt around Emma, if what she felt for her was real, and possible.

She had felt it for the first time when she was trying to destroy the trigger. She had seen something in Emma’s gaze, an understanding, and a much deeper emotion neither of them could name. she had caught glimpses of it since, and felt it for brief moments since. She had felt astounding loss when she sent Emma and Henry over the town line without her. She felt it every time that lost year was mentioned. She felt it in the moments of friendship they shared before Marian had returned. Part of Regina’s hesitation with Robin had been those unnamed feelings between her and the savior.

She felt it when Emma tried repeatedly to fix her mistake. She felt it in the vault when Emma found her and promised to never give up on being her friend. That is when she stopped being able to shove that unnamed emotion down. It rose unbidden whenever Emma looked at her, especially when Emma’s gaze was full of hope, full of admiration.

Emma had pulled out of Regina’s grasp entirely, staring at her hands, unsure of herself. Regina could see the slight tremble in Emma’s fingers and she knew if she didn’t decide soon, Emma would decide for her and run. She couldn’t let things go like this.

“Emma.” Her voice sounded strange to her, foreign, full of that unnamed emotion.

“I should go.” Emma started to stand but Regina grabbed her arm and pulled her back down to the couch and immediately buried her face in Emma’s neck again, still unable to say what she needed to.

Emma stiffened but still wrapped her arms around Regina once more, tentatively. Her pulse was still erratic, her breathing heavy, her touch unsure. Regina moved closer, removing any distance between them. “stay…Please.”

Emma nodded immediately and her arms came around Regina more securely. “ of course, anything you need Regina.”

Regina marveled at Emma’s ability to set aside her own insecurity and discomfort to be there for Regina. Emma was strong, self sufficient, independent, fiercely loyal and unselfish. Regina felt her heart swell again and this time she didn’t choke back her words, deciding if Emma could let herself be that vulnerable, Regina could too. “You are loved more than you could ever know too Emma.”

Emma stiffened again but relaxed quickly. Regina could hear the smile in her voice as Emma kissed the crown of Regina’s head, her warm breath tickling Regina, “ I know.”


End file.
